COURSE DETAILS

Come and enjoy 18 glorious holes of golf situated in picturesque and undulating country at Buninyong. Then relax in the modern clubrooms, have a quiet ale to reflect on the holes that didn’t quite go right to round off an enjoyable day.

The fairways are watered all summer via an independent water supply, and the greens are beautifully manicured.

Green fee players and social groups are particularly welcome. Golf club hire and buggy hire is also available.

Club Tee times

Time for unbiased review hereestablished in 1926 Buninyong remains a 5759m Par 72 with four par 3s ranging from 112-183m, ten par 4s ranging from 267-378m and four par 5s ranging from 440-475m.
The mostly clay-based Santa Ana couch grass fairway layout has mostly mature tree-lined fairways with a mixture of rye and couch grass in the rough. The smallish greens consist of a mixture of 70% seaside bent grass with about 30% poa grass in them. The greens are mostly 10-15m long & wide with little undulation but have a consistent good roll and speed.
In terms of hazards, there are only 4 unbunkered holes (at 3, 11, 14 & 16) with a total of 18 bunkers on the course. There is a pond along the left rough of the 15th and the Union Jack Creek flows along the northern side of the course parallel to the Midland Highway and is dammed to create 2 ponds. Water hazards come into general play at 2, 4, 15 & 16.
The front nine is longer and more bunkered than the shorter and relatively easier back nine.
FRONT NINE holes worthy of mention include: the 129m 2nd (index 14) with a teeshot across the yellow-staked Union Jack Creek to a green with 2 bunkers; the 349m slight bend left 3rd (index 2) to a 15m long x 8m wide bunkerless green; the 308m slight bend right 4th (index 3) with the yellow-staked Union Jack Creek cutting across the fairway about 40m short of the green guarded by 3 bunkers; and the 474m slightly uphill 9th (index 7) which doglegs gently to the left at the top of the crest about 150m out from the green, then plays downhill to a 2-tier front-sloping green 20m long green with 2 bunkers guarding 8m wide front or lower tier-easily the most challenging Par 5 on the course.
There are no long Par 3s greater than 185m and no long Par 4s greater than 380m on the course. Most holes have a slight-to-moderate fairway bend with 9 greens not visible from the tee mound.
BACK NINE holes worthy of mention include: the 440m 15th (index 17) is a short-and-easy Par 5 which doglegs 90 degrees sharply to the right from 260m off the elevated tee with a long and narrow water hazard along the left rough to a green with a bunker short left; and the signature 378m 16th (index 1) with slight fairway bend to the right with the Union Jack Creek and ponds along the entire leftside rough to a 20m long x 15m wide bunkerless green.
The par 3s (2, 8, 12 & 17) vary in slight topographical elevation from tee to green and all are bunkered. The pick of the Par 3s is the 2nd.
The par 5s (at 1, 6, 9 & 15) play similar in approach and lack good bunkering. The pick of the Par 5s is the 9th.
Overall, the short Par 72 layout can be fairly challenging, but is not the best course in Ballarat.
Buninyong is one of the shortest Par 72 layouts in the Goldfields/ Central Highlands regions and is also one of the shortest of the 5 layouts in Greater Ballarat (others being Ballarat, Forest Resort Creswick, Midlands & Mount Xavier).
Played here 22/10/2012 with $30 green fees. Course access is from Learmonth Street (Midland Highway).
Course elevation ranges from approximately 420m above sea level along the north-western corner of the course at the 5th tee to approximately 460m above sea level at the 11th tee.
Buninyong is one of FIVE 18-hole grass green courses within the Greater Ballarat area which has around 100000 people. Buninyong has around 4000 people and is located in the south-eastern side of the city boundaries about 12km (or 10 minutes) south of the Ballarat CBD, or 8km south of the southern Ballarat suburb of Sebastopol and is approximately 440-480m above sea level.
Check out their website www.buninyonggolfclub.com.au or their proshop can be reached on (03) 5341 8051

One of the better country courses around.
I find that often country courses are characterised by a line of trees separating two fairways, and even though there are instances of this on this course, it's the exception instead of the rule.
It's a bit hilly, but not too difficult to walk. You don't have to hit too many blind shots over crests as with some courses.
Greens & fairways are in top order at the moment.
I was able to get on at 3 on a Saturday, noone playing ahead or behind us, made for an excellent afternoon of golf.

This is a great course, I used to play when I was little and lived up the road. I have recently been back and wow what a course. Great greens and a good range of challenging holes. One of my favorites is the 11th which looks down a huge hill if you get a nice straigh long drive you can almost reach the green in one.
Great surroundings and great layout. All this of only 25 bucks.

Buninyong is a Great course, it’s greens are immaculate and
the hardest hole on the course is definitely the 16th. It is by
far the best course in the Ballarat area I work overseas and
always go back to that when I return. I am looking to become a
member in a month when I get back home does anyone have the
prices to become a member. I am only new to the area myself.

I was a member here for a couple of years before leaving the area. Certainly the best course in the Ballarat area (or country Victoria) for several reasons. This course requires you to think and play many different shot types. The greens are the best in the area, generally fast and ‘pure’ even during the winter months. There are some severe slopes where the break is obvious, but it is greens which appear less severe that can be the most demanding.

You quickly become a good putter on this course or your scores go backwards, yet having such consistent roll and pace means a good ball striker can be rewarded when putting well. The hilly nature of the course makes up for the lack of distance, most notably on the par 5’s, where longer hitters can get home in two on all of them. The first is definately a birdie hole for the single figure marker. Putting a drive over the hill sets up a long iron or wood onto a flat green with just one bunker left front. The second is a short par three, protected at the front with a bunker and a creek to catch anything mis hit. Gives as many bogeys as birdies, having a severely sloping green.

The 3rd and 4th are paraellel par 4’s, and the real keys to a good front nine. Position of the tee is key, with many players taking iron. The 6th is a par 5 which can be reached, but the percentage play is to leave it short left and go at the pin from there. Anyone who has a regulation two putts here quickly walks to the next tee. The 8th is a longish par 3, and seems to always play a club longer than you think. No tricks here except getting it to the hole.

The 9th is perhaps the hardest par 5 on the track. The trick is to hit it long, aiming for the right hand side of the fairway. This gives the longer hitter a better line to the green (which is not visible except for a walk up the hill-aim for the middle of the fairway). Would suggest taking a long iron to leave it in the ideal position to approach a tough green.

The tenth and 11th are stories of up hill and down again. Position off the tee is critical, balls hit off fairway are dead. Rest of the back nine is a similar story, the 16th is the hardest on the course with water down the left. The 18th is a nice hole to finish with, demanding a good tee shot to go at the flag. One of the best courses in country Victoria with a good clubhouse to boot.